Since it is Mental Health Awareness Month, I want to raise an issue that is close to my heart and profession; the mental health of lawyers and other legal professionals who often get overlooked in this area.
When you think about jobs that can be construed as dangerous, the profession of ‘lawyer’ would never cross your mind.
In fact, entering into the legal profession is one of the biggest gambles you can take with your mental health – as lawyers are amongst the top ten professions with the highest suicide rate in the United States. I personally know several sad cases where top successful lawyers in Europe have taken their lives.
This is why lawyer well-being matters.
It is believed that half of ALL active attorneys suffer from depression and anxiety, due to the nature of the job, the long hours and the stress that comes with it.
Due to this, lawyers struggle to create a healthy work/life balance – often working up to 60-80 hour weeks, while simultaneously juggling a social/family life. This sort of lifestyle is not sustainable.
So how can it be improved?
Lawyer well-being refers to any lifestyle choice or change that helps improve the work/life balance, that helps improve the management of stress levels, and that helps promote and foster a healthy and sustainable self-care routine.
Numerous lawyers fall into the trap that is substance abuse, believing it can help pull them out of reality for a moment of relaxation. This is not the case, and should be avoided at all costs.
I strongly encourage every lawyer, and every legal professional, to take a read of this helpful article Lawyer Mental Health and Wellness – Why It Matters, as a means of bringing awareness to the personal and professional issues lawyers face everyday. For more depth on the topic, you may also want to have a look at my all-time favourite paper On Being a Happy, Healthy, and Ethical Member of an Unhappy, Unhealthy, and Unethical Profession.
